An exciting book reading was organized by HMF for Patricia Herlihy’s Vodka: A Global History. Ms. Herlihy, Professor Emeritus of History at Brown University, is a specialist in Russian and Ukrainian history and is the author of The Alcoholic Empire: Vodka and Politics in Late Imperial Russia (Oxford University Press) and Odessa: A History, 1794-1914 (Harvard University Press). Herlihy spoke to the crowd and gave attendees a preview of her work by reading excerpts from the new book. Paul Rodzianko, Chairman of the Board of the HMF, and his wife Chauncie, the HMF’s Vice President, conducted a tasting of Russian and Ukrainian vodkas. The tasting was accompanied by a feast of both countries’ national zakuskas, which became a highlight of the evening.